Compared to other genres of storytelling, language narratives might be amongst the most flexible. There seems to be a lot more leeway for the writer in terms of the conventions they use and how they decide to tell their story. When it comes to language narratives, it seems as though most of the conventions lie more so in the structure and composition of the writing rather than what the actual storyline has to include. For instance, a comedic book or film has to be humorous at several points throughout the plot, or a horror video game has to evoke a scare out of the player for them to feel as though they are in a terrifying situation. Language narratives could exist in every genre of storytelling because the language or details the author uses can be interchangeable depending on the kind of story they wish to tell. In Jamila Lysicott’s 3 Ways to Speak English, how the spoken word piece sounds is more important than how it’s read. This shows the way in which the language used becomes the storytelling aspect.
When it comes to writing a language narrative of my own, I feel it will get tricky at some points throughout the writing process. I am usually not one to talk about myself, especially in enormous detail. I would like my narrative to be engaging, yet still meaningful to someone else other than me. My biggest focus is not getting too engulfed in telling my story that I forget that I am not just writing for myself. Being relatable and having substance within the narrative is my main goal.
The beauty of a language narrative is that it is not made for self-satisfaction or solely for the pleasure of someone else. Our stories come straight from our own brains and our own hearts, and nothing else could dictate how we genuinely feel. Narratives based on our personal experiences help create deeper human connections. As the world starts to detach from “the human experience”, we engage more indirectly with each other. Keeping storytelling alive and prevalent is more important than ever. Nothing else could relate to us more than we could relate to each other, because only we know what it means to be human or huwoman.
I like your point about how flexible the language narrative is. You’re right! We’ve seen all kinds of ways to do one, from video to poetry to simple story. You’re also right that the conventions are largely about structure in that it’s a narrative with a beginning-middle-end structure, and other than that, it’s up to the writer.
About details – trust me, if people want to know more, they’ll ask ;-). However, only write as much as you’re comfortable with. I think you’ll be surprised when people say something like “oh that happened to me, but like this” and share more details. That’s an encouraging sign that they’re connecting… that you’re connecting with each other… and that makes it easier to write more yourself.
Nice work on this!